Ultra

"We were generally aware that this was very hot stuff and Enigma was very good. Patton, Patton didn't believe it. And we got one message that said that his headquarters was going to be strafed at a certain time. He said, 'Ha!' So he stood outside and then they came over and started shooting. He was a believer after that. "

-Arthur J. Levenson, United States Army Officer and NSA Official

The messages decoded by the Bombe machines, classified as Ultra, contained vital information concerning Axis movements, military plans, and operations. Ultra intelligence was so valuable to the Allies’ conduct of war that Churchill read and utilized the decrypted codes. This allowed military leaders to correctly make crucial decisions and exploit enemy weaknesses, especially during the Battle of the Atlantic, the North African Campaign, and D-Day.

"Churchill" 1941

Source: Winston Churchill Memorial Trust

"A typical Enigma intercept from the Bletchley Park operation in England" 1941

Source: National Museum of the United States Air Force

“Ultra did something to mitigate British disasters. It greatly assisted the British forces that were sent to Greece, to retreat without serious loss when it became obvious that they couldn't hold a line against the scale of the German invasion... It gave us - here was another disaster - all the information required to destroy the German attack on Crete. We didn't destroy the attack but we made it an extremely damaging exercise for the Germans, which was done because the Ultra signals were so complete.”

-Sir Harry Hinsley, Codebreaker at Bletchley Park

"Wherever the Germans were, we were listening. When there was a lot of excitement, the wires would be absolutely humming with Morse, they'd be transmitting all over the place. We'd really have cramp in our fingers sometimes, trying to write it down non-stop."

-Joan Nicholls, Codebreaker at Bletchley Park during WWII

"ULTRA gave the Allies critical information in the European air war. During the Battle of Britain, the outnumbered Royal Air Force depended on ULTRA to counter German raids. Later, Enigma intercepts gave Allied planners detailed information on the effects of strategic bombing, and they allowed Allied air power to virtually halt Axis sea convoys in the Mediterranean."

-Archives of the National Museum of the United States Air Force